Author: Roswellianprincess16 aka Selena
Rating: TEEN/MATURE (for some violence and heavy situations)
Coupling: All CC, Dreamer focus
Disclaimer: I do not own Roswell or any of its properties including its characters. They belong to Jason Katims and their perspective partners.
Summary: Altering the events of the episode End of the World (S2). Liz never pretends to sleep with Kyle. When Future Max tells her she has to do something else, she breaks down, knowing that she would die if she had to break Max's heart again.... and hers. So instead, she runs. She runs far away hoping that Max will now see why he needs to be with Tess. Now, almost a decade later, Cara Morrison is a New York city crime scene investigator, when she falls upon a body. That body holds an incredibly familiar face from her past. And a frighteningly familiar symbol. A silverhandprint. And now, she is forced to face the image of the man who haunts her dreams.
Author's Note: Thank you Hybrid-Angel for the awesome banner! I love it!!!
You're the best. And thank you Melissa aka mmcherron for your wonderful help beta-ing. You're fabulous. 
Some lines taken from EOTW.
Dark Hearts
Chapter 1:
She ran through the dark streets, her dark hair flailing wildly behind her. Her legs were burning with exhaustion as she took the familiar turn. She couldn’t stop. Everything depended on her actions at this one moment. She was no longer sure she could do this. She was sure she would die first.
Her words repeated in her head, threatening to haunt her.
“My life is only in danger if I am with you.” She’d said to him as she watched his heart shatter before her. “You know, Max, if...if you truly love me, you'll let me go. I may love you, but I...I don't want to die for you.”
With that, she watched his eyes darken and fill with despair. She would never be able to forget the way it felt to stomp upon his heart. The way her own heart fell into pieces in her chest. She slowed as she reached the front door and took a deep breath before knocking. Everything depended on him. She prayed that he would help her. She tried to calm the screaming within her heart pleading for her to go back to Max.
The door swung open and she was faced with a very groggy Michael Guerin.
“I need your help.” She hadn’t noticed the tears that had started to fall down her face, the look of complete panic that had overtaken her features. She reached into her pocket and felt the money she’d taken out earlier that day, when she realized, she’d run out of options.
“It’s 2am, what the....?” He paused when he wiped his eyes and saw her face. “What happened?”
“I can’t tell you too much. But I just want you to know that I’m doing this for all of your well being.” She pushed past him into his apartment and paced back and forth in frustration.
“Liz, if you tell me what’s wrong, maybe we can help you.”
“There’s nothing you can do now. I’m leaving town. I need you to help me change my identification.”
She could see the panic building in his eyes. She knew she was acting irrationally, but she was desperate. She needed to do this, before someone caught on.
“Liz… slow down. What do you mean you’re leaving town?” She stopped pacing and planted her feet on the floor. The voice rang again within her ears.
“It didn't work. We have to do something else.” Well, she was doing something else. Despite her protests and her better judgment, here she was, standing before the one person she had never truly had to depend on, pleading to save his life.
“This is my driver’s license. Change it. I know you can.”
“This is crazy.”
“If you don’t do this… if I don’t do this, something very bad is going to happen Michael.”
“Look Liz, whatever it is we can handle it! We’re strong.”
“You aren’t listening to me! This isn’t about you or me Michael! This is about the future of our entire planet. I will not have that hanging over my head!” She yelled, letting the complete frustration explode. How long had she felt like she might combust?
“What are you talking about?”
“Are you going to help me or not. Because if not… I’m doing this without you.” She walked over to his door and felt his strong hand grip her arm. She turned back to see the worry on his face. The voice returned to plague her.
“Just 25 minutes before I came here, I held Michael in my arms...dead. Isabel died 2 weeks before that. Now, you have to do this. You have to find a way. All of our lives depend on it.” She shook her head sharply, hoping to shake the voice from her head. No… no, she didn’t want to carry this burden. She didn’t want to have to do this.
“Liz? Liz, are you ok? Maybe I should call Maria.” He began to pull her back into the apartment when she shook free.
“Do you trust me?”
“What?” He asked, completely lost by the inquiry.
“I’ve never given you any reason to doubt me. All I’ve done is everything in my power to help protect you. Now is no different.”
“Not at the cost of you disappearing Liz. I know I can do some crazy things… but I don’t see how this could work. People are going to ask questions.”
“I’ve handled it. Change it.” She held up her license and reached into her pocket to pull out a few other essentials, such as a birth certificate, a social security card, and a picture ID. He reached his hand up, with a touch of hesitation and swiped the paper work, changing most of the information.
She looked down at her picture ID. Cara Morrison. Liz Parker had just died.
“At the first sign of trouble you call. I… how am I going to explain this to Max? To Maria?”
“You won’t have to say anything. I left them all letters. You never saw me tonight.” She packed everything back into her pockets and reached for the door.
“Hey… you don’t have to do this.”
She turned to face him sadly, the last bit of her old life staring back at her.
“I wish that were true.” She opened the door and stepped out into the eternally dark night.
She shot up straight in bed, her forehead drenched in sweat. She put her hand against her chest, but the tightening around her heart continued. She spun around, letting her flannel pajama bottoms hang off the side of the bed, as she tried to catch her breath. It was the third time that month that she’d had the same dream. God, how she wished it was a dream.
“Cara? Are you ok?” She looked up, suddenly startled at the voice coming from the other side of the door. She took another deep breath and somehow found the strength to walk toward the door. She opened it slowly and peeked out at the familiar face.
“Yea, I’m fine Serena. I’m sorry to have woken you up.”
“You were talking in your sleep… and then you started whimpering.” Her friend looked at her worriedly, her beautiful face wrinkled in concern. “Cara, this has been happening for a few weeks. Are you sure you don’t want to go see my therapist? You could come with me, just talk to him for a few minutes.”
Liz laughed at the absurdity of it. It sounded much like a Maria request. Maria…. She lowered her head sadly, remembering her long lost friend. She wondered what she was doing with her life these days.
“Serena, I’m really not comfortable talking to strangers about my issues.”
“Well… then at least come with me to yoga class. Maybe you need to clear your mind.”
“How about I let you know.” She laughed, knowing that she would not be going. “Besides, I might have to meet with Ava tomorrow afternoon.”
“Maybe I’ll join you.”
“It’ll be tomorrow, after work.”
“You know… I’ve been thinking. Maybe these dreams have something to do with your gifts.”
“Serena….”
“Look Cara, there’s no point denying what you can do. You’ve spent so long fighting your past, so long running away. It’s going to catch up. Maybe these dreams are a sign that it’s getting closer.”
“Let’s hope not.” Liz looked down at the pendant wrapped around her neck. She held it tightly in her hands, the only reminder of her old life. “Go back to bed. I’ll be fine, I promise.” She smiled and nodded at her friend, waiting until she reached her room before closing the door behind her.
She leaned up against the closed door and sighed. She didn’t want to remember him anymore. To remember his long hair and his soft eyes pleading with her.
“You have to help me fall out of love with you.”
What kind of request was that? What was a girl her age supposed to do? He gave her no options. He ripped her life away with just those few words. She’d been running ever since. Running from him, running from his current self, running from the life she had loved. It wasn’t fair. She wiped away the few tears escaping her eyes.
She would not cry. This was the life she had made for herself, things could be much worse. With that, she lay back in bed, and demanded her eyes to close. No more dark shadows, she whispered to herself, as she focused her breathing and slowly drifted off to sleep.
<center>***</center>
She walked down the dark hallway as she reached the last apartment and knocked softly. She heard the clicking of the peep hole, and waited patiently as the door was unlocked and opened.
“Hey.” The face on the other side of the door smiled, and despite it all, she smiled back.
Years earlier, if anyone had told Liz that she’d be best friends with her enemy’s duplicate, she would have laughed, and then told them they were crazy. But here she stood, in Ava’s apartment, ready for her weekly training.
She thought about the very first time she’d seen her, her piercing blue eyes were staring into her own brown ones, registering no recognition. She was lying in a pool of her own blood, several bruises covering her face, cuts and scratches along her body.
Instead of help, Liz had walked up to her in a blazing fury. She’d blasted her. The energy had simply swirled uncontrollably at her fingertips and exploded like lightning onto her helpless body. They both looked at each other in pure shock.
“After all I did, how dare you leave them?!” She’d yelled at her, the blue lightning still swirling with live energy in her hands. “I threw my life away so that you could get your destiny Tess! I practically handed him to you and you’re here?!”
Turned out, she wasn’t Tess. What was more; the duplicate version of Isabel and Michael had beaten her and left her for dead. Ava vowed to teach Liz all she knew about her powers and helping them control them. Liz told her all she knew about the royal four back in Roswell. They were forced to bond over their shared secret.
“Hey. Sorry I’m late. Serena says hi.”
“Yea, tell her I said wassup.” Ava smirked and Liz smiled, as she removed her jacket. She remembered the day she realized the difference between Ava and Tess. The compassion that was part of Ava’s natural demeanor, the intensity and loyalty to friends and family. Liz had thought back to everything she’d learned.
Back to the story of the 8 pods sent in 1947. She’d figured something out. Ava didn’t fit in with the hard core punks of New York. Ava was more of an Isabel… a Michael… a Max. Something had gone wrong, and they’d lost their Tess to the wicked wench back home.
“So, did you do the exercise I gave you?” Ava questioned and Liz nodded, rubbing her hands together to get rid of the static. She could already feel the tingling in her fingers, the force within her willing her to release the power.
“The dreams have been getting worse.” Liz said with a worried look, as Ava looked up slowly from clearing her coffee table.
“Something’s happening Liz. I don’t know what it is… but its coming. You can feel it to, that’s why your mind’s on overload. The stress at work ain’t helping.”
“My job isn’t the issue. Work is the only thing that keeps me sane.” Ava shrugged at her stubbornness, and pushed the couch against the back wall.
“You working tonight?” Liz nodded in response as she closed her eyes and began to focus. She thought of Serena’s yoga techniques. They were good for something. She slowed her breathing and tried to clear her mind. Focus, she told herself as she focused on Ava, standing across the room.
“I can’t hear you.” Ava shouted across the room. She took a deep breath and felt the energy begin to swirl in her mind.
Can you hear me now? The voice said softly as Ava looked up stunned to find Liz standing still in the other corner of the room. What about now? Her voice registered louder as Ava smiled. Liz’s lips weren’t moving.
“You did it.” Liz opened her eyes and smiled. She’d been working on her focus. She had to avoid all distractions if she wanted to keep her powers under control. It had been a nightmare the first week they began to develop. She was like a bad wiring system, turning things on and off or blowing things up just by walking by. Ava’s training had helped to control the madness, and had given her more understanding of her powers than she’d thought possible.
“If he healed you then… you’re different now.” She’d told her. Different? What did that mean? Now she knew.
She’d found it ironic, that after running from all of the intergalactic madness, she’d end up being forced to live her life this way. She was now with Ava, another of their kind, and she herself was now a part of them.
“Liz. Something’s wrong.” Liz looked down at her glowing hands and willed them to stop.
“I’m sorry.”
“What’s going on?” Ava walked up closer, her eyes staring into her own.
“I can feel him.” The room went silent as they both simply stared into each other’s eyes.
“Are you sure?”
“I haven’t felt it in almost nine years Ava. It was like our connection was gone. And then, about a week ago, I just… felt it.”
“He’s here.” Ava whispered and began to reset the living room as if officially ending the session.
“What? What do you mean he’s here?”
“It’s the only way to explain your feelings. He… he’s here.” Liz lowered her head as she thought about what that could mean. Was it possible? Of course not, she knew he was gone. Something had happened; something serious had broken their bond. It had been gone for so long… there was no way. Not now, not after all this time.
“I’ve gotta go. Are you coming by Saturday for dinner?”
“Yea.” Liz grabbed her jacket and headed toward the door, her head feeling heavy and confused. “Liz.”
She turned around to face Ava, seeing the concern plaguing her eyes.
“What.”
“Be careful.” Liz nodded. She headed back out into the dark hallway and off to work.
After a long trip on the subway, she walked into the lab, and almost immediately got bombarded by Colin, her partner. He was smoking a cigarette which he immediately put out at seeing her. She smirked, knowing he’d been caught red handed.
“You know better.” She whispered.
“I’m going to die anyway lad.” He stated with his Scottish burr. “A call came in about ten minutes ago. We have a body.” She nodded and grabbed her kit, ready to go to the scene.
After years in college for Criminal Justice and Forensic science, she’d landed a job as a specialist for the NYPD. Not the prettiest job in the world, but it kept her busy. She had to admit, the more she did it, the more she liked it. Her fascination with Biology had been satisfied by the countless bodies she was able to prod into, due to the autopsy procedures. This one, she was sure would be no different.
“You look awful.” Colin prodded playfully as they jumped into the car. She laughed softly, and took a sip of the coffee she’d grabbed along the way.
“I haven’t been sleeping well.”
“What could be troublin’ ya darling?” She smiled, enjoying the sound of his voice and leaned back against her seat.
“Nothing you’d understand.”
“You know, you’ve been my partner for a good three years now. Don’t I at least get a summary?”
“I’m a mystery. I like it that way.” She smiled, as they reached the crime scene, a subway entrance completely covered over with the yellow caution tape.
She grabbed her case and put on her gloves, leaving the coffee in the car. She stepped out into the cool early evening air and flashed her badge as they let her through and down the stairs.
“This is odd.” She heard Colin say as he headed toward a darker part of the tunnels, and found the body on the ground, covered.
“What would she have been doing out in here?” Liz looked around, asking herself the same question. The officers in charge pulled off the blanket, and it was all she could do to gasp. Her heart seemed to tighten in her chest as she felt the bile rise in her throat. The face staring back at her was far too familiar.
The short gelled hair, the piercings, and the dark makeup didn’t seem to stand out as much in comparison to the familiar dark eyes. Liz leaned down to look closer, her eyes traveling down her body. On her stomach was another familiar mark. Liz immediately reached to her own stomach, to the same spot where hers had stood. On the woman was a silver hand print. And the woman looked exactly like Isabel Evans.
I see you're all dying to know, just what is going on. Who is this person making all these attacks? Is it someone we know or a new person all together? Well... here's a bit of an answer. 
) Now, it seems you all have questions as to who this mystery man in her room was. IN fact, the concensus is Zan. Let's find out who it was....